Welcome to Rotonda Sveti Georgi, the Church of St George!
Here, nestled behind the modern Sheraton Hotel stands the oldest building of Sofia, this little Early Christian church. Look at the surrounding structures; they are remains of Serdica, the ancient town on which grounds Sofia later was built. You can see sections of a Roman street and some other public buildings that have been excavated and now lay naked to the human eye right before us.
The church itself dates back to the 4th century and was constructed by the Romans during the rule of the emperors Galerius and Constantine the Great. Look at this red cylindrical brick building! Isn’t it fantastic that it has been standing here for 1700 years? The Romans built it on the site of a pagan temple and it was used for baptism and it is believed that the Serdica Ecumenical Council held important meetings here.
So shall we step into this ancient home of angels and saints? Look around and you will see the main reason for why this small church attracts visitors from all over the world: its frescoes! Go inside the central dome and look at the walls and the magnificent decorations. There are several layers of frescoes, the earliest dating back to the 4th century, with Byzantine floral motifs. The most famous ones are from the 12-14th century. The frescoes were hidden for 300 years when they were painted over by the Ottomans when they used the church as a mosque. In the 20th century they were restored to their former beauty so that today we can enjoy the full glory of all the prophets, as well as the medieval style angels and the magnificent angel under the dome looking down on us from up there since the golden age of the first Bulgarian kingdom.
When you are satisfied with this glimpse into history, and had enough of all the culture and holiness that this little building is full of, it is time to step back out on the streets of Sofia and get on to the next stop of the tour.
Photo Rotunda Sveti Georgi, Sofia by Ann Wuyts is licensed under CC BY 2.0
